i love to cook food...shoot food. i love to play with food and i love to eat food...soooo, here are my comments, thoughts, recipes and pics of foods i come across. it might be on my plate, your plate, someone elses plate or my dream plate...

if you are a bacon fanatic, like myself, i suggest...demand you to try this fabulous easy slow cooker recipe for the sweet savory ride of your life. it goes with just about anything and everything...wonderful with the apple-peanut butter combo...fabulous with a ripe camembert cheese and a crisp cracker...just the right topping for some toast soldiers and a 3 minute egg...

NOTE...if doing it on the stove top i find it much easier to keep the pieces large or whole for easier flipping and even browning.

2 medium yellow onions, diced small

3-4 garlic cloves, smashed peeled

1/2 cup cider vinegar

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

1/4 cup pure maple syrup

3/4 cup brewed coffee

1/2 tsp Mexican chili powder

2-3 chipotle chilies, diced...out of the can with a little of the adobo sauce

1. cook your bacon until it is browned and the fat is rendered...OVEN or SKILLET...?

NOTE...the 1st time i cooked my bacon, in strips, all at once in the oven...much easier...BUT i lost out on the crispy bacon burnt scrapings that you get from cooking it in the skillet. the finished product didn't miss the scrapings at all...it was fabulous. i did a second batch on the stove top to see if there would be a big flavor difference and i cut the bacon into small pieces...had to do it in 2 batches, took twice as long, kind of messy and kind of a big hassle. this batch is in the slow cooker RIGHT NOW, so we'll see....i'm leaning towards the oven method and cutting it all into pieces before adding to the pot.

NOTE...i just tried the second batch...the one that i cooked the bacon on the stove top and used all the scrapings. i did not see any noticeable flavor difference. i will definitely use the oven method for my bacon from here on out. i think i could still get some of the delicious scrapings off the jelly roll pan and add them, but like i said, i didn't notice anything worth going through all the trouble of stove top cooking. i suggest cooking your bacon in whole strips all at once in the oven.

Add onions and garlic, and cook until onions are translucent, about 6 minutes.

add vinegar, brown sugar, maple syrup, coffee, chili powder and chipotle chilies and bring to a boil, stirring and scraping the browned bits off the bottom of the skillet (or not if used oven method) with a wooden spoon.

add bacon and stir to combine.

transfer mixture to a 6 Qt slow cooker and cook on high, UNCOVERED, for 3 1/2 - 4 hours, until liquid is syrupy.

transfer to a food processor and pulse until coarsely chopped. let cool, then refrigerate in airtight containers, up to 4 weeks

NOTE...i, obviously, put mine in airtight clip-top jars...try to make sure there are no air bubbles when loading into jars...that's where the spoilage can form first if you are storing a jar for a few weeks. this is very rich, but UNBELIEVABLY FABULOUS so you might use it sparingly...

or YOU MIGHT WANT TO SLATHER IT ON EVERYTHING !!!

i have a new favorite breakfast now that i have discovered this wonder spread...a bacon jam, peanut butter and fresh raspberry quesadilla. spread the jam on one side, the p-nut better on the other, add the raspberries to one side and flap over like a quesadilla...talk about a delicious out-of-the-ordinary on the go breakfast...YUM !!!

8 comments:

This looks amazing...bacon is amazing! If I made this I'd be eating it 24/7. I was once a vegetarian and bacon brought me back into the fold. The peanut butter apple thing looks...amazing. Have I said amazing enough times? I have to try this.

All I can say is thank you for your blog! I only just discovered it and I am hooked! Got a batch of this bacon jam on right now and hoping it turns out ok. I am in Australia and chipotle chillies are rare indeed ( substituted with Tabasco, chargrilled marinated peppers and a spurt of BBQ sauce) any other substitute suggestions? Will let you know how it goes ...

hi Meredith...thanks so much. i think it sounds great. i like the substitution idea of BBQ sauce. i can't wait to hear how it turns out. the main flavor comes from the BACON and the caramelized onion so what ever else you add in is a bonus. i've made this jam so many times...once with kalamata figs, another with dried apricots and also one with diced apples and chipotle. too bad you can't get chipotle in adobo sauce out there...i use it ALLLL the time for all kinds of stuff. hey, thanks again...let me knowby the way...can you get Cholula Hot Sauce with Chipotle? here's a link http://cholula.com/hot_sauce_flavors/chipotle_hot_sauce.php

It worked out really well! So far today I have eaten it on toast dipped in a soft boiled egg and this afternoon on a chunk of apple with a bit of Nutella -yum! Should I store it in the fridge? Thanks for the link I will check it out. Tonight I make the Nutella fudge!

hi meredith...YAY! so glad it turned out great. you have breakfast and lunch covered...maybe slather it on a grilled cheeseburger for dinner this week? i could put it on anything!.YES it should be kept in the fridge. i divide it into little sterilised jars, give a few away and save a few. sometimes i will put a layer of bacon fat covering the jam surface, then lid on tight. i am NOT the food police, but if unopened, untouched and properly refrigerated it's good for at least 5-6 weeks. my point is...hide a little jar in the fridge.

Homemade Skyr

The Black Chicken Experience

Pork Belly. Slow roasted 'n Seared

About Me

ahhh...welcome to my little world of flavors. you'll see that my food obsessions vary from one extreme to the other. from nice safe little shortbreads and blondies to spicy chicken feet and BBQ pigs tails. I hope you enjoy the spectrum of goodies and follow Ruby and i on our our culinary trip to who knows where...my thought is...if it looks good, it'll taste even better AND IF IT LOOKS UGLY, I HAVE TO TRY IT !!!

bacon caramel fudge

Spicy Chocolate Shorties

Haute Chocolat

lil' Ruby

*DISCLAIMER

Ruby is responsible for all posts while i am busy in the kitchen and behind the camera. As we all know, one with four legs has no opposable thumbs. She leans towards the hunt and peck method. So please we ask that you excuse any unintentional grammatical errors.